Winding River Resort — Hotel in Four Corners States

We arrived on July 2 for a five night stay with our travel trailer. We departed a day early because my wife was ill and we were concerned a medical emergency could develop if we stayed.

When we made our reservation, we preselected a site that had electric and water, and while it met our needs we would not select the same site on a future visit. It was barren and had no shade, while others were more treed and desirable. More website photographs of sites would be helpful in selecting sites online, "sight unseen."

All the staff we had contact with were friendly and helpful. We did the ice cream social, a pony ride, and visited the 'petting farm' a couple times during our visit.

It is dissappointing that Winding River Ranch has made no provisions for campers/guests to recycle. We kept all our empty aluminum beverage cans and other recyclables, and took them home for recycling, but too few are as committed to recycling as we are and much of what could have been recycled at the resort probably just ends up in the landfill. Ironic, in such an area noted for its natural beauty, conveniently located immediately adjacent to the national park. Aluminum cans in particular are readily recyclable.

We collected a lot of 'micro-trash' from our campsite. We picked up plastic tooth flossers, lego pieces, nylon strap, coins, and numerous other small pieces of inorganic waste. Please alert guests to be cautious about dropping or leaving behind litter and trash however small it may be. Encourage guests to conduct a 'sweep' for their site before departure, looking for and collecting any waste so that it can be properly disposed of.

The water from the spigot at our site (83) was clouded with lots of dark sediment that looked like bits of black ash from a fire. When we reported the problem, we were told just to let the water run for a while, and that it would clear up. But because we cannot see the water in a hose, or after it enters our trailer's water system, I did not feel reassured and was concerned that the water would clear up and not clog our trailer's filter, or be safe for our use. We never did hook up a hose to supply water directly to our trailer at any time during our stay. Instead, we relied on the potable water we had put into our trailer's fresh water tank before arrival using a source we know is clear and safe, and repeatedly filled a 5-gallon Coleman water cooler for drinking, making coffee and other consumption from spigots elsewhere at the resort/campground where we could see the water was clear and free of sediment.

There were convenient, free showers available in the nearby camper's services building, we used them and the toilets there too to avoid exhausting all of the water from our...

Although the town of Grand Lake is cute and fun, this "resort" was disappointing. We stayed over the July 4th holiday in our travel trailer and our site, rocky and uneven, was about 100 yards from their pond. This pond is just a stagnant overgrown swamp that makes for great mosquito breeding. The mosquitoes were relentless our entire trip so we left a day early! We used DEET sprays, Thermacells and citronella sprays but they made any time outside miserable. I believe this can be rectified with some landscaping of the pond area or maybe mosquito control services. I felt truly bad for the people who paid more to be by the pond not knowing what it really was. They have a "security" woman who rides around to enforce rules and regulations but be warned If she catches you doing anything she doesn't like. She is not friendly, she yells and scolds like her life depends on it. My husband ran the generator as we were dumping, (so on our way out)and he got yelled at. My son was riding a dirt bike, going no faster than anyone riding an electric bike, but apparently that is not allowed and he got screamed at. Our friend was also screamed at for riding her licensed motorcycle, which is allowed, but apparently this woman didn't see the plates and felt the need to stop and yell at her as well. She needs some serious communication training as there was no need for her behavior. Simply talking to us and telling us of the policies, we would've apologized and complied. But she put us all on the defense by hollering. The best part of the stay were the bathrooms/showers. They were spotless and convenient and well maintained! Kudos to the woman cleaning them she was super friendly. We were able to see the towns fireworks display from our campsite which was nice. We didn't rent atv's as we felt they were overpriced, and we didn't horseback ride as the weather and the scenery of the trail unfortunately isn't much to look at due to the fires a few years back. (Not the owners fault). We will not stay here again but people who want to camp with their horses or with kids I think would enjoy themselves. But bring plenty of bug repellant and don't get a site...

I enjoyed it. But a few things to know up front: DO NOT LET THEM PICK YOUR SPOT: Pick your own campsite, it is more money but very worth it. When it says they will pick you the best spot available, just know, it is going to be the spot no one would willingly choose.

We were placed in the middle of 2 driveways on a patch of grass that was very busy close to all the activities, and RVs. It was very noisy and busy up and into after dark. Not really relaxing at all.

We walked the property to find 5 spots on all the days we were there that were available. These areas had mountain views, quiet, you could see the horses and lots of space and shade (which we also lacked). We weren't too happy once we seen we were duked for all of a few dollars difference. Paying nearly 70 a night I expected better.

Not knowing the area I trusted the business. Turned out to be a bad call for me.

PETS: If you have a pet, know that this is bot truly a pet friendly campsite. They are not allowed in any of their facilities from the store to the restrooms.

DO NOT camp alone with a dog.

You can't leave your dog unattended due to the wildlife but also their rules. Meaning you will not have access to the restroom or any other facilities on the property. If you're alone with a dog you likely will be going to the restroom in a bush and going with out shower.

Also most trails in the area are not dog friendly. JUST FYI.

TENT Camping:

I was entirely unaware of the burn regulations in the area. Check this before you book if you have no way to prepare food. I ask for firewood and was notified upon check in they were under a no open flame regulation. I absolutely feel that they should have notified me of this prior to arrival. Not living in the area there was no way to know that. Also temperatures were low 40s at night, with out the fire capabilities I felt a bit out of my element being new to camping.

Otherwise it was an...